Demi Lovato began the promotional cycle for her seventh studio album, It’s Not That Deep, by pretending to tease an upcoming documentary. The announcement was false, revealed to be a self-mocking joke about the number of documentaries Lovato has released in the past.
Although repetitive output becomes ripe for satire, Lovato has endured hardships worthy of documentation. In 2018, the singer experienced a near-fatal drug overdose after six years of sobriety. Additionally, while a Disney Channel star, Lovato struggled with addiction and body-image issues. “I’m sorry for the burnout,” she says on “Sorry to Myself”, an It’s Not That Deep track where she reflects on the amount of pressure placed on child stars. “Hustle culture sometimes does pay off, but it comes with a price,” Lovato said in a 2025 interview with Paper magazine.
While snippets of It’s Not That Deep allude to the singer’s tumultuous past, most of the album stays true to its name. “Popvato is back,” said its creator, who aimed to return to the lighthearted nature of her early work. Lovato’s recent output, the albums Dancing with the Devil and Holy Fuck, explored the angst of her addiction and sobriety journey.
Produced by Zhone, a collaborator of Kesha, It’s Not That Deep is a sleek collection of club pop, with a variety of sounds that diversify a record of singular purpose. The atmospheric chorus of “Frequency” resembles Lovato’s early hits: radio pop that showcased her vocal range. However, in the post-chorus, “Frequency” transitions into an autotuned EDM haze, where Lovato claims, “No one can f*** up the vibe,” as a bass fluctuates beneath her vocals.
The record also hits mellower notes without deviating from an upbeat sound. “Let You Go” has a sing-along chorus, but the synths throughout convey a melancholy mood. “In My Head” is a fast-paced yet ethereal attempt at moving on, with a catchy melody that distracts from its cliché lyrics. “Before I Knew You” calls back to the empowerment pop of Lovato’s first few albums but is reimagined in a breathy, confessional mode indicative of the present.
The main pitfall of It’s Not That Deep is that it risks being derivative of Charli XCX‘s brat, 2024’s contemplative hyperpop smash. While Charli XCX used club-ready tracks to contemplate the nature of her own celebrity, Lovato uses a similar sound to argue that there is currently nothing to think about at all, hence the album’s title. However, even that assertion conveys an important change. It’s Not That Deep is a reversal of the meaning Lovato tried to create on previous records to varying degrees of success.
In 2021, after the release of Lovato’s third documentary, The Atlantic ran an article titled: “Stars Now Understand That Their Destruction Is Our Entertainment.” By turning her life into reality television, Lovato lost the ability to control its narrative. Instead, the medium for sharing that life became its own narrative for public consumption, where fans decided that the new entry point to Lovato’s work—an investigation of heavy subjects—overshadowed the frothy pop she sang.
It’s Not That Deep strikes a new balance between work and play, as Lovato accomplishes an adult version of the task given to her as a Disney star: providing escapism. Self-references on this album feel liberating and humorous. The music video for “Fast” features Lovato’s internet memes: snippets of interviews in which the singer made ridiculous comments that fans never forgot. By embracing the outlandishness of these moments, Lovato supports the mission of It’s Not That Deep, approaching a lighthearted task with seriousness.
On the record’s cover, Lovato tries on a dress still wrapped from the dry cleaner. A tag on the garment reads, “We [Love] Our Customers”. Holding up the dress, Lovato stands amid a bustling crowd of young and old, referencing the cover of Billy Joel’s 1976 album, Turnstiles. To remain relatable to their audiences, pop stars must have one foot in everyday life, while turning the mundane aspects of that life into a spectacle. Completing this act requires an audience’s willful ignorance and a celebrity’s ability to manipulate reality. In this case, then, It’s Not That Deep has depth in one regard: it makes the hustle look easy, which is no small feat.
